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Difficult Heritage – Public Program

Sharing research projects from the Decolonizing Architecture Advanced Course (2021-2022).

May 23–25, 2022

Royal Institute of Art, Stockholm

It is with great pleasure that we, the participants of the Decolonizing Architecture Advanced Course, invite you to join us in a three-day discursive program around the theme of “Difficult Heritage”. During this year, our collective and individual research projects aimed to reflect and intervene in the debate regarding architectural heritage associated with painful and violent memories.

Our starting point was a research visit to Borgo Rizza in Sicily. This rural town was built during the fascist regime in the 1940s by the “Entity of Colonization of Sicily” in order to “reclaim”, “modernize”, and “repopulate” the south of Italy, which was considered “empty”, “underdeveloped”, and “backward”. The partnership we have established with the local municipality of Carlentini has offered us the concrete opportunity to problematize and intervene against the persistence of today’s colonial relationship with the countryside. Parallel to this collective research, we have explored individual case studies on the theme of Difficult Heritage.

“St(r)aying together” is a series of encounters sheltered at GROUND, collectively presenting nuanced perspectives on decoloniality and demodernization in relation to architecture. We aim at maintaining the broadness of the individual research interests and methods of expressions while establishing a collaboration that originates specifically in learning from and inspiring each other’s research.

The intersection between individual and collective research is what we would like to share during this end-of-year public program, which will consist of presentations, workshops, performances, intimate gatherings and dinners.

MONDAY 23.05.2022

Hus 28 (KKH)

9:30 am
Welcome and coffee

10:00 am
Out of Control When I Turn My Power On – Sara Davin Omar

11:00 am
The French Plot, Monuments, and Crafting the “Good Colonizer” – Peter Nylund

12:00 pm
Lunch Break

2:00 pm
Deambulando – Rodrigo Albornoz

3:00 pm
Fulfilment Center Innocence – Denisse Vega de Santiago

GROUND (Båtbyggargatan 20, 120 68 Stockholm)

5:00–9:00 pm
St(r)aying together
Exhibiting: Steffie de Gaetano, Linnea Fröjd, Mikaela Karlsson Silvia Susanna, Alice Pontiggia

Conversation on The Act of Recosmizing with Alice Pontiggia and Jan Araújo Fernandes

TUESDAY 24.05.2022

Hus 28 (KKH)

10:00 am
The Nordic Open Call – Sara Rossling

11:00 am
Upcoming or Postponed? – Laure Catugier

12:00 pm
Lunch Break

Tensta Konsthall

2:00–5:00 pm
Higher seminar and the book launch of Refugee Heritage DAAR – Sandi Hilal and Alessandro Petti, at Tensta konsthall within the frame of the group exhibition Hurting and Healing: Let’s Imagine a Different Heritage.

WEDNESDAY 25.05.2022

Hus 28 (KKH)

9:30 am
My Fascist Grandpa – Laura Fiorio

10:15 am
Collective Production of Design Objects as a Creolizing Practice – Zeno Franchini and Francesca Gattello

12:00 pm
Lunch Break

2:00 pm
Untitled – Michelle Jean de Castro

Listening Room (KKH)

3:00 pm
Recosmization Lab 5 – Alice Pontiggia

GROUND (Båtbyggargatan 20, 120 68 Stockholm)

5:00–9:00 pm
St(r)aying together
Exhibiting: Steffie de Gaetano, Linnea Fröjd, Mikaela Karlsson Silvia Susanna, Alice Pontiggia

Conversations on Permeance and Undomesticated Homes with Steffie de Gaetano and Silvia Susanna

CHECK OUT OUR END-OF-YEAR PUBLICATION WITH FULL DESCRIPTIONS OF WORKS HERE.